Malacia

Origin

From Latin malacia, from Ancient Greek μαλακία (malakía, "softness, sickness").

Full definition of malacia

Noun

1. (medicine) An abnormal craving for certain types of food. from 17th c.
• 1916, A. J. Carlson, The Control of hunger in health and disease, The least abnormal condition appears to be the malacia, or desire for highly spiced or acid foods that are sometimes seen in chlorotic girls and in pregnant women.
2. (pathology) Abnormal softening of organs or tissues of the human body. from 19th c.
• 1860, w, Cellular Pathology as Based Upon Physiological and Pathological Histology, As soon, namely, as a process of this sort sets in in a compound organ, as for example, a muscle, a palpable myo-malacia is certainly produced when all the muscular elements at a given point are at once affected; but it happens far more frequently that, in the course of a muscle, only a comparatively small number of primitive fasciculi are affected, whilst the others remain almost intact.

Derived terms

• osteomalacia